Before Monday night’s debate I
told my wife that I didn’t think that Trump had to win the debate. He just had
to show that he could hold his own on the same stage with a candidate with much
more political experience.
It is hard to judge who won the
debate since bias will always enter into one’s evaluation. This bias was
certainly evident in watching the spin doctors and commentators offer their own
analysis. From my viewpoint I do not believe that there was a clear winner.
There was nothing like the first Obama/Romney debate four years ago when even
the President’s advisors had to admit that he had taken a beating.
If I was grading the performance
of both candidates, I would give both of them a “C”. I give Clinton a passing
grade because she largely handled herself well and seemed knowledgeable in her
responses. She made no major gaffes. Actually, I would have to say that Clinton
was at the top of her game but, in my opinion, that is a high as she will go.
She does not have an “A” game. Even one of the commentators at PBS had to sadly
admit that Clinton did not inspire. She exhibited no passion, emotion, or
vision. In the debates to come I don’t believe that she will be able to rise
above the pedestrian politician we saw last night.
On the other hand, Trump was full
of fire, emotion, and a sense of purpose. I give him a “C” not just because of
a couple of embarrassing answers, but because he missed a number of
opportunities to drive his message home.
On taxes, he could have given a two-minute
lesson on how lowering the corporate income tax will do more than just keep
American companies home, and bring massive overseas earnings home. Lowering the
corporate income tax has the potential to reduce the cost of goods to the
American consumer. Corporations do not really pay taxes. All corporate
expenses, including taxes, must be included in the cost of goods and services
sold to the consumer. How could a company afford, for example, the huge cost of
a Super Bowl ad if it didn’t pass the cost along to the consumer.
When it came to his own tax
returns, Trump could have explained that it is not un-American to minimize your
tax burden. He could have pointed to the well-to-do Massachusetts liberals who
have chosen to migrate to next door New Hampshire where there is no state
income tax. He could have pointed to six figure pension recipients who have
left Connecticut to relocate to Florida where there is no state income tax.
More tellingly, he could have
asked why there is a Clinton foundation, a Gates foundation, or a Buffett
foundation. Why did these wealthy people choose to funnel massive sums into
these foundations where they would be free of Federal Income and Estate taxes?
Is it possible that these individuals thought they could achieve more than the
Federal government could?
I also thought that Trump could
have done a better job of wondering why Clinton thinks that there is so much
that needs to be done to fix this country. President Obama has been in office
for almost eight years. Why didn’t he accomplish all that Clinton and the
Democrat platform now advocate? Sometimes, Clinton seems to be running against
President Obama.
Trump could also have done a
better job on foreign policy. His best line of the night was almost a
throwaway. He noted that Clinton has experience but it is bad experience. He
allowed himself to get sidetracked on his opposition to the Iraq war, and let
Clinton largely off the hook on the disastrous results of the Arab Spring that
has led to chaos in Libya, Syria, and Egypt. He even let her off the hook on
Benghazi. Why did she participate in the Administration's YouTube video scam?
Finally, I think that both
candidates missed the boat on the last question that went something like, “If
you lose the election, will you support the President?” Why didn’t either have
the wisdom to mention that there has always been room for a “loyal opposition”
in America. I know that there are times when we must stand united behind the
President but I would have liked a candidate to say that they would continue to
fight for the cause they represent no matter what the result of the election.
###
Jim S. writes: re Trump's taxes, news reports claim that his tax return
ReplyDeletehas already been revealed (despite his audit claims) in
varied legal suits in which he has been involved. The last
president to refuse to deliver a tax return was Nixon, 1980,
not necessarily a bed fellow one might want to invoke. I
keep thinking that her email issue is Watergate, and it
needs to take center stage. Like Watergate, it seems puny on
the surface, but underneath we have smashing cell phones, 5
corrupted aides, a castrated FBI Director, refusal to
cooperate with Congressional subpoena, and yet Trump shied
away from tying into it. I go back to my original point,
he has a bad habit of listening only to himself. It's
not enough to say that her experience in government was
"bad experience." It is necessary to be specific
about the "bad."